


Goodbye, and Hello - The Sunrise We Saw That Day

by cybershoujo



Category: BanG Dream! (Anime), BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - After College/University, Childhood Friends, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Post-Canon, Reunions, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-13 14:41:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29030337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cybershoujo/pseuds/cybershoujo
Summary: After graduating from Haneoka, Ran Mitake has spent 4 years studying abroad in the States. Now that she has her degree, she's returning home to begin the next chapter of her life... but it's not a story she'll have to tell alone.
Relationships: Aoba Moca & Mitake Ran, Aoba Moca/Mitake Ran
Comments: 17
Kudos: 50





	1. Come Spring, When The Flowers Bloom

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first chapter of a Mocaran post-college fic I've been meaning to write for a while, and I'm glad I finally got around to it. New chapters will be posted whenever I feel like it, or whenever enough people specifically ask me to.
> 
> Please enjoy! I love Moca and Ran so so so so so much.

> _Moca,_
> 
> _Hey. It's been a little while._
> 
> _I got my diploma last weekend. For some reason, it doesn't give me that exhilarating sense of pride I usually think of when I try to imagine what a graduation ceremony is supposed to be like, but… I don't feel sad about it, either. I'm just glad that I finally have the chance to take a deep breath and lie down for a bit, as if I only just now realized I've been holding my breath for the entire 4 years I've been in college._
> 
> _It's the same reason that I'm finally taking the chance to write you this letter. I know we haven't exactly been keeping in touch this whole time I've been away. I still remember we promised we'd talk to each other every day, and we kept it up for a while, but then finals came up, and I said I needed to take a break to focus on studying, and... we just never returned to the same pace. I'm sorry. It's easy to say that we'll stay in touch when we've seen each other practically every day for years, but… you know how it is._
> 
> _I can only imagine what your daily life is like nowadays. I never thought I'd be one to break promises, but, at the same time… back when we were still in middle school, I never thought I'd be staying abroad in America, either. Funny how these things work out._
> 
> _I've lost count of the days. It's probably been months since the last time I shot you a message, and this is probably the last time I'll send a message to you before I take the plane back to Tokyo. I figured I'd try sending snail mail to you for once, handwritten and all. Maybe it's just because I've gotten so used to getting so wordy writing so many essays in both English and Japanese for my degree, but somehow I feel the words I want to express flowing out of my pen more easily than they do when they're coming out of my mouth or through a keyboard. The fretboard calluses on my left hand have faded away by now, and have been replaced by a writer's callus on my right. I started this letter just meaning to say "hello," and I feel as if I'm just thinking out loud as I write._
> 
> _I wonder if you've still been practicing guitar. I had to leave my old Les Paul with my dad when I left for freshman year, and I bought a cheap Epiphone when I came here to make sure I still had something to practice with, but… I drifted away from that, too. I went from practicing every day, to practicing only on the weekends, until, one semester, I decided to sell the Epiphone for textbook money. I've still found time to sing, though. So long as the dorm supervisor doesn't tell me I'm being too loud, that is._
> 
> _It's hard to practice these things when you have to spend so much time studying. I had a scare in freshman year where my GPA almost got too low for me to keep my scholarship, and I think I read more in that single week than I read in a year at Haneoka. I'm glad I managed to make it through, though. It's been a lot of difficult work to get up to this point._
> 
> _It's strange, going from high school to college. In college, it's easy to be alone. You can go to lecture, study quietly, talk to nobody, and immediately shut yourself back into your dorm immediately after class hours end. You could even go an entire semester without talking to your professors once, if you wanted to. In college, you have to consciously_ try _in order to be noticed - to make friends. I've made acquaintances with other students at the university - some local, some Japanese - but I don't think I ever managed to get as close to them as they seemed to be with each other. I guess I took for granted having so many friends back at home that, once I was on my own, I realized I'd never learned how to make friends by myself. All these years, I've always had you to open up my walls._
> 
> _I'll be honest. I miss you, Moca. Most of these days, I've been kept company by my books and pencils. They're more than enough to keep me occupied for countless evenings — not that I really had a choice, mind you. Back home, I never really had a single boring day whenever you were around. However, on those empty days when I've cleared my catalogue of things to do, I didn't have much in the way of extracurriculars or friends to spend my free time with, so instead… I lay sleepless at night, dreaming about the nights where you were here._
> 
> _If I had been smarter about it, I'd have written a letter like this much earlier, but it never really occurred to me between all of my exams and assignments. I kept on putting something like this off for another day, until another day became another week, then another month, then another year… and suddenly, I've already graduated, and I'm flying back to Japan next week. Better late than never, I guess._
> 
> _I've already got my ticket. I'll be arriving at Haneda Airport on Sunday at around 4 AM, bright and early in the morning. I can only imagine what the jet lag will be like. Once I get back… let's figure out a time we can go out for lunch or something together. Just like old times. There's a lot to catch up on._

* * *

_Incoming flight from Los Angeles arriving at Gate 8._

_Incoming flight from Los Angeles arriving at Gate 8._

Ran ran through her messy black hair, all tossed and knocked up from her groggy in-flight nap on her travel pillow. It was never this messy when she used to keep it shorter. The hassle of taking a trip to a salon took a lot more commitment than the daily hassle of brushing knots out of her hair. Besides, even if she _had_ gotten pretty good at English, it was always easier to tell the hairstylist how she wanted her hair in Japanese. If you're too nervous to tell them they've gotten your hair wrong in your native tongue, imagine what it's like trying to stutter it out while mentally sorting out foreign conjugations at the same time.

Wheeling her luggage behind her, she made her way out past the gate as part of the crowd pouring out into the airport lobby. She felt that there should probably be more weight in her first steps back on Japanese soil in 4 years, but, honestly, Ran was too tired from her nap so rudely interrupted by the _Japan Airlines_ flight attendant to think too much about it. Her father had woken up early to drive her back home, and she didn't want to keep him waiting _too_ long while she searched for whatever parking lot he'd parked himself in.

She stopped for a moment to scan the room for signage, or a map, or _something_ to point the way past the crowd of people filing in or out of flights through Asia and across the Pacific. Even at this incredibly early hour, the airport still seemed as crowded as it'd ever been. However, the one thing that caught Ran's eye was a single person standing in the middle of the sifting crowd, dead in the center of the hallway between airport gates, their hands in their jacket pockets.

Ran squinted and rubbed her tired eyes, still adjusting to the bright light inside the airport, to make sure she wasn't just seeing things. Where her eyes failed her, however, the sound of their voice struck her alert and awake in an instant.

"Heeeeeeeey, Ran."

Moca Aoba.

Ran froze in her tracks, mouth agape. She blinked once or twice, just to confirm what she already knew was true. Moca _had_ come here this early just to welcome her back.

"There's no way you came here at 4 AM in the morning. No way," Ran said, shaking her head, hurrying towards Moca with a newfound bounce in her step.

"Seeing is believing, Ran-chan. It's me, the great, the almighty, the all-powerful Moca Aoba in the flesh. Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!" she replied, hands on her hips, staring at Ran with a jeering sense of bravado. It might be early in the morning, but it's hard to sound more tired than usual when Moca always had that sleepy drawl in her voice. To Ran, it was a pleasant surprise to see that Moca had stayed more or less the same.

"You even decided to wear that jacket you never returned to me," Ran said, pointing to the bright red R emblazoned on the right side of Moca's chest. "I can't believe you still have it."

"Huh?" Moca said, looking down at herself, as if she had been dressed by a random number generator and was only now realizing what she was wearing. "Oh, I suppose I did decide to wear this today. What a funny coincidence," she said, in her usual sing-song voice. Knowing Moca, Ran couldn't tell if she was feigning ignorance, or if she had genuinely not realized.

"I'm guessing you saw my letter," Ran said, now an arm's length away from Moca, letting go of her luggage handle. "I was thinking of asking you if you could see me at the airport, but I figured it was so early in the morning, and…"

"Huh? What letter?"

"I… sent you a letter, telling you I'd come in this morning. Did you not get it?"

"I don't remember seeing any letters, Ran. Come to think about it, you haven't sent me _anything_ in the past few months."

Ran smacked herself on the head. She should've guessed it should've taken too long for the letter to arrive.

"You've kept poor Moca-chan so lonely. Oh, you wound me," Moca complained, smugly.

"I guess… I have a lot more to catch you up on than I thought, huh," Ran sighed, crossing her arms and glancing to the side in resignation. Perhaps she shouldn't even bother with asking how Moca figured out exactly when her flight would arrive.

"What about you, Moca?" Ran asked. "How've you, been, um… holding up, you know."

"Oh, Moca-chan's been doing just fine, actually," she replied. "There's so much free time to do things when you don't have to go to school. I must've played guitar for at least a bajillion different wedding bands. They pay stupid well," Moca said with a smile, seemingly proud of herself. "When there are no gigs around, I usually hang around Hazawa Cafe and bother Tsugu. And Yamabuki Bakery's still open. I don't think I would be alive to tell the tale if it had closed down."

Ran brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"I… guess you've been doing well for yourself then," she said. "Better than me, anyway. I feel like I barely passed all my classes."

She looked back up at Moca.

"If you've been doing well all these months, I'm glad."

"See? You had nothing to worry about, Ran. When fed her daily tribute of fresh bread, the great Moca-kami-sama can do anything! Ehehehe."

Ran couldn't help but stifle a small laugh. She had technically only just entered the airport, but she already felt at home.

"We should… probably clear out of this area," Ran said, putting her hand back on her luggage bag. "We're standing in the way of people trying to get to their flights. Besides, I don't want to miss the rest of my stuff when it starts going around baggage claim."

She took a step forward, going past Moca.

"Come, we can catch up more while we walk—"

All of a sudden, Ran felt Moca's arms wrap around her, and she stopped in place. In Moca's tight embrace, Ran could feel how warm that jacket was keeping her. Her ivory hair drooped over Ran's shoulder, and when Ran took a breath, she could smell the scent of freshly baked bread bread and a tinge of freshly brewed coffee that reminded her of their years together in high school. She had spent countless months reminiscing on her fond Haneoka memories, but now that she was back in Moca's arms, smelling her familiar scent, all of those memories rushed back to her. She wasn't just remembering them, but reliving each and every one of those memories in a single instant.

Where Ran's breath was taken away, Moca's grew faster, more exasperated. The sound was muffled as she had buried her face in Ran's shoulder, but Ran had already put her own arms around Moca before she had even consciously realized that Moca had begun to shed tears.

"I… missed you so much, Ran. I'm… glad you're home."

Ran bit her lip for a moment, pensively, before patting the back of Moca's head and running her hand through her hair.

"I missed you too, Moca. I'm happy to be back."

In a moment that felt like an eternity — an eternity that made Ran's four years abroad feel like a blip — the two young women held each other, as if to make up for all the countless days they had spent apart. The airport was still crowded, but to Ran and Moca, all they could hear was each other - their voices, their breaths, their heartbeats.

Moca pulled away to take a deep breath, meeting Ran's gaze with teary eyes. Her face was far redder than Ran's streak of bleached hair, now long faded.

Ran seeing Moca wipe a tear from her own face was enough to make her do the same.

"Do… you want to hold hands?" Ran asked. "While we walk to baggage claim, I mean. I don't think my dad will mind if he sees."

Moca didn't utter a word in response, but simply snaked her hand down to Ran's wrist, locking their fingers together.

"Tomorrow — no, today, actually, let's go meet Tsugu and Hiichan and Tomo-chin," Moca said. "They've been waiting to meet you again, too."

"I don't see why not. It's not like I have classes to attend."

Moca smiled.

"Oh, I almost forgot. I have a welcome home gift for you, Ran-chan."

"Huh?"

Moca fished something out of her pocket, and squeezed it into Ran's one free hand. She looked down at her open palm to see that Moca had given her a single pair of keys on a keyring.

"Don't tell me these are the keys to your apartment, Moca."

"Nope. They're the keys to _our_ apartment."

"What the—"


	2. Twenty-Two Years Young

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ran, with Moca at her side, is ready to say hello to the rest of Afterglow once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: alcohol for this chapter

Himari  
  
**Today** 2:15 PM  
**Himari:** wait so like  
  
**Himari:** ur moving in with moca????  
  
**Ran:** Yeah  
  
**Ran:** We talked it over already. She gave me the keys  
  
**Himari:** omg fr  
  
**Himari:** like finally  
  
**Himari:** long distance is hard idk how u guys survived  
  
**Himari:** u didnt even come over for the holidays or anything  
  
**Ran:** Huh  
  
**Ran:** we weren't dating  
  
**Himari:** u  
  
**Himari:** are kidding me rn  
  
**Himari:** U WERENT DATING?????????????  
  
**Himari:** did u guys break up?????????????????? how did i not hear about this until now  
  
**Ran:** We were never dating in the first place??  
  
**Himari:** girl  
  
**Himari:** AND WHAT ABOUT ALL THE TIMES WE CAUGHT U MAKING OUT ON THE ROOF IN HIGH SCHOOL  
  
**Ran:** Um  
  
**Ran:** I don't know  
  
**Ran:** We never really made it official?  
  
**Ran:** I always just thought of her as my best friend  
  
**Himari:** what is up with you today ran  
  
**Himari:** actually i shouldnt even be surprised  
  
**Himari:** uve always been like this  
  
**Himari:** ig ur just better at english now  
  
**Himari:** what degree were u getting in america anyway? i forgot  
  
**Himari:** omg maybe u shouldve brought moca there instead  
  
**Himari:** maybe u guys could have gotten married  
  
**Himari:** i know i wouldve married tomoe like years ago if i could  
  
**Himari:** but u kno  
  
**Himari:** stupid shinzo abe give me gay rights already  
  
**Himari:** wait  
  
**Himari:** i forgot he stepped down in 2020  
  
**Himari:** oops  
  
**Himari:** can u reply BACK to me omg  
  
**Ran:** Sorry  
  
**Ran:** I got distracted  
  
**Himari:** by what  
  
**Ran:** I don't know. Just thinking about things  
  
**Himari:** well u kept me waiting so long that my trains like one stop away already im about 2 get off at my stop  
  
**Himari:** see u real soon ran!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A jingle sounded as Moca pushed the door open to the restaurant, followed by the sound of Ran's footsteps as she followed closely behind.

"We're heeere!" Moca announced, not caring that she was interrupting a dozen or so strangers' lunches. Out of the many people who turned their heads to glance at the pair entering the eatery, three particular faces sitting at a table together stood out to Ran — familiar faces that she was expecting to meet. More pertinently, however, they were expecting _her_.

"Hey, what took you so long, Ran?!" chided the tallest of the lot, pushing a half-empty glass of soda to the side. There were at least three other empty glasses next to her, each containing ice cubes at varying stages of melting. Her words were cutting, but the grin that spread across her face after she watched the two walk into the joint betrayed her happiness. "Four years is long enough," she continued, "but these twenty minutes you've been keeping me waiting here have hurt me where it hurts most: the stomach! C'mon, I'm dying to order an appetizer, at least."

Ran offered a small smile. "I almost didn't recognize you, Tomoe," she said, gesturing to Tomoe's scarlet hair, tucked away in a low ponytail. "But… you sound just the same as ever."

"Oh, but what about me, Ran? You recognize me, right?" butted in the girl sitting in the booth next to Tomoe, practically clinging onto her shoulder.

Ran had to stifle a warm laugh.

"Of course I recognize you, Himari. You haven't changed your hairstyle one bit."

"Why would I? This is my _iconic_ look."

"I guess so. It looks good on you. But even if you _did_ change it up… I'm sure I'd already have seen it on the dozen or so selfies you post online every day."

"Aw, thank you! Wait, are you making fun of—"

Himari was interrupted by Moca walking over to the last girl's seat and placing a hand on her shoulder.

"What about you, Tsugu? Don't you have something to say to Ran, too?"

"Oh, um, er…" she stuttered, caught off guard, averting her eyes from Ran's gaze. Her hands clutched the fabric of her beige apron at her lap.

"The Hazawa Café uniform…" Ran remarked. "Moca _did_ tell me you still worked there, but it's nice to see it for myself."

"Ah!" Tsugumi yelped. "I didn't even realize… I was so busy thinking of how I would say hello to you after all these years, I forgot to change out after my shift…"

Ran sat down in the booth next to her, offering a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, Tsugumi. I'm sure there's a lot to catch up on from these past four years. It's hard to figure out where to even begin."

"...Yes, you're right," Tsugumi replied, after a brief pause. "I'm just happy to see you again."

"Gosh… Texting you was one thing, but you really _do_ have this brand-new air of maturity around you, Ran," Himari said, not being able to help commenting as she watched Ran intently. "I guess you really grew up over in America."

"You think so?" Ran asked. "I just feel… pretty much the same, I guess."

"Oh, you guys fret too much!" Tomoe raised her half-empty glass of soda, as if to prompt a cheer. "We've got plenty of time to catch up. After all, you'll be sticking around here for a while. Right, Ran?"

Ran nodded. "Yeah, I suppose I am. I'll… be moving in with—"

"She's moving in with Moca!" Himari exclaimed, rising to her feet and leaning over the table.

"Wow, Hii-chan," Moca said, slinking into the booth next to Ran, squeezing Tsugumi a bit further in. "You sound more excited about it than Ran is."

"Huh?"

The rest of the table reacted with laughter at Ran's incredulity. She instinctively went to cover her face with her hands in shame, but behind it, she couldn't help but offer a smile. Talking with her childhood friends again, hanging out together, getting into playful banter…

It was as if she had never left.

Moca, sitting beside Ran, was the only one able to catch a glance at her smile.

"Alright, I suppose that covers greetings," Tomoe spoke up. "Let's order something already. I'm starving!" 

* * *

Ran glanced up at the bright yellow lights of the restaurant's bathroom. It was quiet in here, save for the muffled sounds of people chattering and silverware clattering beyond the door.

"Why'd you drag me in here, Himari?" Ran said, crossing her arms. "I get you were trying to be subtle and all, but if _I_ noticed, everyone else probably did, too."

"Oh, it's whatever!" Himari, replied, waving her hands in front of her dismissively as if she were swatting at the air. "We're just having a one-on-one. Girl talk, you know."

"But all five of us are girls."

"Y-you know what I mean! I just — I could tell you needed help. That's where _I_ come in — Himari, relationship advice master!"

"Oh, so this is about Moca. Have people actually started calling you that now?"

"No, but if I say it enough, people will. Anyways, you're getting together with Moca for real this time, right? No mutual pining B.S. or whatever."

"I don't know. I don't even know what 'for real' is supposed to mean."

"Don't give me that! You two are moving in together. I don't know if it gets realer than that. I've had enough of seeing you flounder around your feelings since middle school, so I'm going to make sure you do something about it! You've been away for four years, so if you're not proactive, you're going to give Moca the impression that you just think of her as an old friend, nothing more. You _do_ like her, right?"

Ran's hands fell to her sides. She fidgeted a bit, rubbing her fingers together.

"...Yeah. I guess I do."

"Then you gotta show her you're _serious!"_ Himari said, giving Ran a light shove on the shoulder. "You're grown-up now, Ran. You've gotta show Moca that you're ready for a grown-up relationship."

"You mean, like…"

"I mean, like, showing her that you _really_ love her! Not that you're just attracted to her. Love isn't just about romantic kisses at the sunset — it's about being a responsible and dependable partner, too. It doesn't mean being two incomplete halves to a whole, but being one whole complete Ran."

She poked Ran in the chest, where her heart would be.

"And you've gotta prove that to Moca."

After a moment to ponder Himari's words, Ran looked back up at her and met her gaze.

"You're right," she said, nodding. "I was a bit doubtful, but you really have picked up on a lot of wisdom these past few years, Himari."

Himari immediately broke into a smile. She offered an "aw, you're too kind," the sort of response you give to somebody when you're trying to act humble, but you're not-so-subtly enjoying the feeling of inflating your own ego.

She cleared her throat.

"Ahem! Anyways, the reason why I've gotta tell you this _now_ is because I have a plan for you. You've been away from Moca for four years. It's now or never, Ran."

"I'm listening."

"Alright, so you've gotta take her out on a date. Somewhere fancy and romantic, but not _too_ romantic, or she'll catch on to you immediately. Instead, go somewhere grown-up, like… like a bar!"

"Uh… I don't know any places."

"Oh, pfft. No duh. You've been away for years. Go to this place called Bantam downtown. It's got a great atmosphere and it's really welcoming. I'll send you the address on my phone. Take Moca there, and pay for both of your drinks. Be smooth. Puff out your chest a little. Show her how mature and responsible you really are."

"I don't know, Himari. This seems a little…"

"Oh, it'll be fine! I've never steered you wrong before, have I?"

Ran squinted at Himari.

"...Don't answer that," Himari continued. "Anyways, the check for lunch should be coming up soon. Once we head out and you're alone with Moca, remember to tell her you want to take her out!"

"O… kay."

"Good luck, Ran! You've got this," Himari said reassuringly, offering Ran a wink as she exited the bathroom.

Now by herself, Ran turned to the bathroom mirror, looking at herself up and down. She slowly walked towards her own reflection and rested her elbows on the edge of the sink. She lowered her head, letting her locks of long raven-black hair fall down, just barely touching the wet surface of the sink's ceramic basin.

She looked back up to meet her own gaze.

_Am I still the Ran that Moca wants in her life?_

_..._ Can _I be?_

* * *

"You know, Ran, I never thought you'd think of taking me to a place like this," Moca said, her hands in her pockets. "Especially not at this time of night. You were never the type to be out in town this late."

She turned her head upwards as she walked, her gaze pointed towards the moon in the sky. Without a cloud in sight, the waxing gibbous was in full view.

"It's so nice out today. If only the moon was just a tiny bit more full. That photo would probably make for a really good computer wallpaper, or something. Right, Ran?"

Moca turned her head back to the side.

"...Right, Ran?"

"Oh, uh, yeah," Ran said, glancing away from her phone. She swiped out of Google Maps, shut off her phone, and put it back in her pocket. "Sorry, I was just looking at a couple of emails I just got," she explained, as if to answer a question that Moca hadn't asked.

"Ran-chan, still busy as ever," Moca teased. "I thought you left all of your business in America."

"Don't… worry about that now, Moca," Ran replied. "The bar should be just around the corner."

She walked up ahead, outpacing Moca by a couple of steps.

"C'mon. Let's get moving."

"Comiiing!"

* * *

Arriving at Bantam, Ran pulled the door open, gesturing towards Moca.

"After you."

"Oh… what a gentlewoman you are, Ran-kun," Moca cooed, placing her hands on her hips. "I'm swooning."

Ran opened her mouth, as if to say something, but nothing came out. Failing that, she simply gestured once more for Moca to walk through the door.

"Alright, alright, I'll go through," Moca responded. "I know your noodle arms can't keep the door held open for too long."

Ran bit her lip. If the objective was to make Moca think she was cool or something like that, she wasn't off to a good start.

The inside of Bantam gave off an air of class, with its warm lighting and rich wooden furnishing. Ran scanned the room to take in the atmosphere of the bar for the very first time. Half the seats were empty, but out of those that were occupied, most patrons appeared to be white-collar salarywomen winding down after their 9-to-5. The rest were mostly sharply-dressed 30-somethings, probably hopping from bar to bar and enjoying the city's nightlife. The bartender was chatting with a couple of customers — probably regulars — as she wiped a glass with a cloth.

There was no doubt that Moca and Ran were the two youngest people in the room.

"I'll take this seat," Moca said, curtly plopping down on a stool at the counter, her momentum causing the seat to swivel around for a single complete rotation. "You can get a good look at the TV from here. I don't know what all of those sports guys onscreen are supposed to do, but they sure are excited about chasing after that ball."

"Alright, Moca," Ran said, sitting down next to her. She raised her hand to catch the bartender's attention. "Miss!" she called out. "I'd like a drink for me and — uh, my friend and I."

The bartender walked over from the opposite end of the counter, placing the glass aside. She glanced up and down at Ran.

"You got ID, ma'am?"

"...Yeah, I do," Ran replied, fishing through her pockets for her card. She pulled out her provisional driver's license, still marked with a photo of herself from senior year of high school, and handed it to the bartender.

She looked down at the card.

"This expired three years ago."

"That's… well, um…" Ran stammered.

The bartender put the license back down on the counter in front of Ran. "No worries, it's fine," she said, turning to the wall of bottles of liquor behind her. "It's got your date of birth on it. 'Least I don't have to worry about a kid like you drinking and driving this time of night. What can I get you?"

Ran let out a sigh of relief, and turned her head to Moca.

"I'll let her order first."

"Nah, nah. I wanna see what you order, Ran-chan."

Shit. There goes Ran's plan of seeing what Moca ordered, saying "I like that drink too," and getting a glass of the same thing.

"Alright, um…" she muttered, trying to think of the first kind of alcohol that came to mind. "I'll have a, uh, whiskey."

"What kind?" asked the bartender, fetching a pair of drink glasses.

Ran stopped to think. Seemingly for the first time all evening, Moca was staying silent, watching Ran flounder in front of the bartender.

"We've got bottles of everything," the bartender spoke up, seemingly. sensing that Ran was drawing a blank. "We've got Yamazaki, Hakushu... even American labels like Jack Daniel's too. Take your pick."

"I'll... just have your recommendation," Ran replied.

"Personally, I like Yamazaki the best, but you'd probably like a highball better than pure whiskey. It's ginger ale with Suntory Toki to taste—"

"I'll have that, then," Ran replied. "The highball."

Moca leaned over the bar counter, her cheeks in her hands, reacting to Ran's choice of beverage with a chuckle. "If that's Ran's choice, then I'll take one too, then."

"Alright. Two highballs, coming up."

It wasn't long before the bartender filled up their glasses and turned back to attend to the bar's other patrons — but, in the silence between Moca and Ran, neither of them uttering a word to each other, it might as well have taken forever. Ran would likely have noticed Moca's gaze burning a hole in the back of her head if she wasn't staring down at the wooden countertop the entire time.

"Alright, Ran," Moca said, holding her glass in her hand and leaning slightly towards Ran's seat. "Drink up."

Ran's hand fidgeted a bit as she reached for her own highball, hesitating before picking up the chilled glass. She held the glass up in front of her, as if to take a sip, but stopped to gaze down into the drink. She watched the ice cubes float in the liquor, shifting around and floating up as they slowly melted. Her eyes followed the bubbles of carbonation, clinging to the side of the glass for as long as they could before shooting up to the surface and bursting upon contact with the open air.

"Ran?"

"Yeah, I — let's drink."

Ran slowly pushed the glass up to her lips, her heart pounding out of her own chest. To her, it almost seemed like the rest of the bar had gone silent as she went to take her first sip from the cocktail.

She drank.

Immediately, Ran's entire face scrunched up, and she lowered the glass back to the countertop. She could barely taste the sweetness of the ginger ale through the scorching bite of the whiskey. She stuck her tongue out and swished it around, as if to scrape the taste off.

Moca burst into laughter.

"Ran-chan's been defeated…"

Ran was hunched over in her seat, clutching onto her glass for dear life, though she had no intention of picking it up again.

"I — I can't do this. This was a bad idea."

"Oh?" asked Moca, her eyes wide open with incredulity. "What do you mean by that?"

"This was Himari's idea," she explained, still collapsed onto the countertop. "I… I don't drink. I can't stomach alcohol in the slightest."

"Oh, I knew that the second you walked in here," Moca said with a smile. "But tell me more about what Himari said."

"She…"

Ran lifted her head up slightly.

"She told me I had to show off to you. Show that I'd grown these past four years. Something like that. She said that I'd take you out on a date here, have a drink or two, and then take you back home, to prove that I was a cool and responsible adult or something, but… I can't even…"

Ran shook her head.

"I don't know. I have this piece of paper saying that I've graduated university and I'm ready to go out into the world, but it doesn't feel like it. I still just feel like the same dumb kid I was years ago, except now I'm supposed to be cosplaying a 'grown-up'. I still have no idea what that's supposed to mean, or who I'm supposed to be."

She looked up towards the ceiling, letting the yellow lights shine into her eyes.

"I went to university in America to see the world, but… I feel like staying within the campus walls just sheltered me from it."

Moca nodded in acknowledgement.

"Mood."

"What?"

"Mood. I don't feel like a grown-up, either. But I don't really care. Hii-chan gave you the wrong idea."

Ran furrowed her brow.

"What… do you mean?"

"I can't believe that Himari. I've had to set her up with Tomoe more times than I can count for her to get past her cluelessness, and now _she's_ calling _herself_ an expert on love. She's so silly. Besides, that idea of 'mature and cool…' She's probably just projecting about what she likes about Tomo-chin."

Ran's head sunk again.

"God, that makes too much sense. She draws me in with a few lines of actual good wisdom, and then she throws me into this mess…"

Moca patted Ran on the back.

"Don't worry. It wouldn't be the first time."

She hopped off the stool.

"Anyways, I figure you don't want to stick here for too long, Ran-chan. I've gotta show you to our apartment."

"...Alright."

"Okaaay," drawled Moca. She took out a pair of 1,000 yen bills and slid it towards the bartender without a word. She put her hands in her pockets and started walking towards the door to leave, but stopped in her tracks after a couple of steps.

"Wait. I'm forgetting one thing."

She turned around back to the bar counter, picked up her highball, raised it up, and drank it in a single gulp. She placed the glass back, picked up Ran's drink, and downed it as well.

"Alright, that settles things. Let's get going, Ran."

Moca pushed the door open to the chilly night air and briskly walked through the threshold, letting the door swing closed behind her. Ran could only freeze in shock, her jaw agape, as she watched Moca exit the building.

* * *

_"Oh, uh… I figure I should probably show you guys. I got an email from one of the colleges I applied to last night…"_

_"Oho!"_

_"H-hey, don't push me out of the way like that, Tomoeeee!"_

_Tomoe was practically clambering over herself to get a better look at Ran's phone. It was a particularly warm and breezy day on the rooftop of Haneoka Girls' High School — not hot enough to make you melt, but warm enough to shed a drop of sweat or two just by standing up. The wind was a pleasant respite from the heat, but every now and then, a particularly strong gust would blow past, the trees would rustle, and your hair would blow into your face. It was as if the weather couldn't make up its mind. For a moment or two, it would almost seem like it was a particularly nice day — the sun was out, after all — but then, immediately after one got themselves too comfortable, they would notice that their clothes clung to them with their own sweat, or a swift puff of wind would get a speck of dust in your eyes, or something moderately uncomfortable like that._

_Ran held up her phone to the other four girls, so they could see the message she had gotten. Emblazoned at the top was a professional-looking red logo, marked with a shieldlike insignia, the type you'd expect from any decent academic institution._

_"Woah, cool!" Tomoe remarked. "U-S-C, huh…"_

_She paused for a second to squint, before continuing._

_"I can't read that much English. You tell me what it says, Ran. Did you get in, or no? You're worrying me here with how much you're hesitating!"_

_"Oh, um…" Ran replied, biting her lip. "It says, uh… I got accepted for their exchange program. It's a full ride, too… for tuition and moving costs and everything."_

_Ran could barely even finish her sentence before the rest of Afterglow erupted into a chorus of "oohs."_

_"That's so cool, Ran-chan!" Tsugumi said, beaming. "Do… you think you'll take it? It's a pretty big opportunity…"_

_"Well…" Ran paused to think, putting the phone back in her pocket, before being interrupted by an exclamation from Himari._

_"But that's so far, too!" she interjected. "I can't imagine our Ran going all the way to America for school…"_

_Moca leaned forward on her stomach, staring at Ran with her chin propped up in both her hands._

_"Yeah, Ran-chan," she drawled. "I thought you told us you were planning on staying around for a while. Something about Dad Mitake wanting you to stick around to look after the flower shop, right?"_

_"Mmm…"_

_Ran stood up and walked towards the railing at the edge of the roof. She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the bar and looking out into the breeze._

_"I did apply to a bunch of schools in Tokyo, yeah. Mostly, my dad just didn't want me to have to go out to some other prefecture like Fukuoka or Hokkaido for school when I can stay in the city for just as good of an education… or that's basically what I think he said, anyway."_

_Ran's scarlet streak of hair blew in the wind._

_"I applied to USC as a 'what-if' option. Just to give me more choices, just in case. They don't have too many students from Japan yet, and when I heard about the scholarship, I didn't see any reason to_ not _give it a shot. My teacher was oddly insistent about applying, anyway, but… I told my dad last night about me getting in, yeah. He really wanted me to go. Said it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Expand my horizons. Meet new people."_

_Moca's brow furrowed. She turned her head towards Tomoe, Tsugumi, and Himari, but every few moments, her gaze would shoot towards Ran's direction for a split second._

_"I guess Ran-chan's going to be butting heads with her dad again, huh? I don't think she'd want to be all on her own thousands of miles away. Of course Ran would say no…"_

_Moca turned her head back to Ran with a smile, eyes closed._

_"Right, Ran?"_

_Ran's grip on the railing tightened._

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to DivineNoodles for helping me proofread and edit this chapter! Amelia, you're the best. By the way, have you read Bearing the Weight of Happiness yet? I haven't, but it's really good. She wrote it. Go check it out if you haven't already. Sound of the summer.

**Author's Note:**

> "By the way, I don't have enough money for a taxi back. Can I hitchhike with you and your dad?"


End file.
